A Yeovil man who went shoplifting and then gave the items away for free in a bid to win recognition because he was lonely has been banned from entering any shops in the country.

Simon James Thyer was caught repeatedly stealing from stores in Somerset and Dorset but didn’t keep any of the items for himself.

When he appeared in the dock before magistrates in Yeovil they were told that the defendant either gave his stolen items away for free or for a small nominal amount as he was lonely and had a “need for recognition”.

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Prosecutor Christine Hart said that on each occasion the defendant went to the various supermarkets and stole or attempted to steal items by concealing them either in bags or a rolled up blanket and then left without paying for them.

She said that he was given a six month suspended prison sentence in September 2016 which was still ongoing and was also subject to a deferred sentence for which he was due to appear back before Bristol Crown Court in July.

Defending solicitor Greg Peters said that Thyer’s shoplifting was motivated by recognition adding that he had lost a number of family members in recent years.

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“As a result he would commit shoplifting offences and then give the products way either for free or for a very low nominal price in a way of getting recognition from those people,” he explained.

“If he did not steal then he would go out and buy things and give them to people for a nominal price.”

Mr Peters said that Thyer had recently completed a Thinking Skills programme with the Probation Service which had addressed his need for recognition and had now led to him working with a theatre group.